Trainers show support for retiring Lloyd

Veteran jockey Jeff Lloyd has a strong book of rides for his final day in the saddle at Doomben.

Champion jockey Jeff Lloyd has seven mounts, which are a cross section of his greatest supporters in Queensland, for his last day of riding on Saturday.

Lloyd will have rides for Toby Edmonds (Sunday Session and Granny Red Shoes), Chris Waller (Auerbach), Tony Gollan (Kemsrey), Chris Munce (Woolsey), Kris Lee (Mongolian Wolf), Richard Laming (All Hard Wood), at Doomben.

“They have all supported me and it is a good to have a ride for them on my final day,” he said.

“It is a good lot of rides and I would naturally like to go out on a winning note.”

Lloyd, 58, is one of the great comeback stories in racing.

South African-born Lloyd was a renowned in his homeland as well as the tough schools of Hong Kong and Sydney before moving to Queensland in 2012.

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However, he suffered a stroke at a Sunshine Coast race meeting in March 2013 and missed more than a year of riding.

It would have been easy for Lloyd to retire but he was determined he wanted his two sons to see him ride at his best.

Since returning he has won three Queensland metropolitan premierships with a fourth in his keeping well before Saturday.

He has ridden 560 winners in that time, set a metropolitan record of 137 in a season and became the oldest jockey to win the metropolitan premiership.

Lloyd announced last year he would retire and set Saturday as the farewell date at the start of the winter carnival.

He intends to devote his time to helping his boys become professional jockeys.

“It is on to a new chapter in my life,” he said.